Stop Following Instructions and Explore

One of the characteristics of the social networks is that you are asked to fill in the blanks when you complete your profile, establish your notification or privacy settings, or connect with other applications.

From an early age, we are all conditioned to follow instructions. And our experience with the traditional educational system not only reinforces that behavior – it practically demands it.

Yet, strangely enough, the free markets of commerce applaud and reward those that break the rules – those that resist conformity in favor of exploration.

Explore

You don't have to be a non-conformist to make the most of the gaps in every system – just go about your business while quietly seeking them. O.K., I suppose you have to be willing to accept some heat once in a while, but like anything else, it will pass.

In the film The Social Network, Mark Zuckerberg made the decision during his days at Harvard that it would be fun to test the limits of the systems that constrained everyone else. Someone has to be the first to do it.

Yet, if you keep your eyes and ears open, you will discover that there are others that are already doing it. This is one of the secrets of taking full advantage of the what is possible with your social media marketing.

Test the Limits

Last week I finally established a Facebook Page for my new media marketing business. There were reasons why I didn't do this sooner, but now I've come to realize that we all need a dual presence on this Web – one for Google and one within the predominantly closed walls of Facebook where many of our friends, customers, and influencers hang out.

One of the questions Facebook asks you in the Basic Info is when your business was Founded. And they give you a box that seems to allow just enough characters to insert a date. However, if you keep typing you will discover that there is room for more – including a valuable link to your blog or website!

And when that information appears on that left sidebar it doesn't say Founded – it says Information. That alone should be a clue that it is an opportunity for more … Information.

What Else?

The opportunities like this are numerous. When you load up your YouTube videos you are given a box for a description of the video. These days it's probably more obvious than before that you can load up all kinds of content – and links.

One thing to be aware of when you are posting links to all of these sites is to use the http:// format to be sure your links are clickable. It may take up to 24 hours for these links to become functional, as it is sometimes necessary for everything to first be loaded up to their servers overnight.

You won't know what's possible if you don't stop following the crowd and explore. That's what the successful marketers are doing. They look for patterns. That's how you will discover the gaps that are available for the taking.

And that is also why one of the categories of this blog is Awareness. It's more than a mindset, it's a skill that you can develop as you teach yourself to undo the conditioning that prevents you from noticing the opportunities that are available to all of us.

If this has been useful – share your thoughts with a comment, or click on that Facebook Like button to share it with YOUR friends.

Until tomorrow, Jeff

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